G-NT3806KSJP

“Per Say”


   


timid as a houseplant , horny watching avatar ,

someone seeing u , knowing u so intimately , can be a terrifying thing ,

u hiss , savage blossom ,

stupid , weak , what a waste





u want a drip but i’m a tsunami , of feeling , per say ,

my george miles , a bad imitation , i’m never sure & ur never right , haha ,

call off ur goons , cycle of violence & that ,

which unsavory personage hurt u





clay pigeon , bird’s-eye view ,

ur allegiance to something that maybe never was ,

robot crime family , no half-measures ,

something abt bivalves , something abt a heart





light on ur breath ,

take a dip ,

river ,

suck a shrimp head





for those who burn in the memory of love ,

the gentleman will suspend ,

the gentleman will suspend ,

as if already dead

MICHAEL CHANG (they/them) is the author of several collections of poetry, including DRAKKAR NOIR (winner of the Bateau Press BOOM Chapbook Contest), CHINATOWN ROMEO (Ursus Americanus Press, 2021), as well as BOYFRIEND PERSPECTIVE (Really Serious Literature, 2021). Tapped to edit Lambda Literary's Emerge anthology, their poems have been nominated for Best New Poets, Best of the Net, & the Pushcart Prize. In 2021, they were awarded the Poetry Project's prestigious Brannan Prize. Their forthcoming collections include ALMANAC OF USELESS TALENTS (CLASH Books, 2022) and SYNTHETIC JUNGLE (Northwestern University Press, 2023).